"The situation at the time was that the First Prince, the eldest son, was almost confirmed to be the Crown Prince. So what would happen if I killed him?"
"...Other princes and princesses must have run amok to take that empty seat."
"Yes, that actually happened. I was planning to select one of them who could be used as a puppet and place him in the King's position, but..."
A blatant laugh was heard.
The Duke, who had lowered his eyes as if reminiscing about the past, paused and looked up. The Emperor was looking down at him with scorn.
"That's funny. Did you think things would turn out as easily as you thought?"
"...That's right. It was my arrogance."
Eduardo, the evidence of that arrogance, looked at him blankly and then smiled.
"Who would have thought that the Ninth Prince, who had no presence, would stand out?"
To be precise, he went crazy.
The Ninth Prince, Eduardo, believed that the First Prince's death was due to a fight for the throne, so he killed all of his siblings who had attempted to take the throne and took the position himself.
There was no mercy. Even their children were killed to destroy the seeds of rebellion.
The Duke watched all of this in silence.
Eduardo, who ascended the throne, named the kingdom 'the Empire' and recognized the first prince's children as the Crown Prince and Princess.
"...That's strange. Why are you so provocative today?"
The Emperor raised one hand and touched his forehead as if he had a headache.
"From mentioning the First Prince carelessly to admitting to the murder charge that I was unaware of and revealing your dirty greed."
"..."
"What on Earth is your intention?"
Memories of the past that he had buried due to his busy life came back to him again, and the Emperor gently gave strength to the hand holding the armrest.
'I will be back. It won't take long.'
'In the meantime, I'll ask for Elpidius and Alethea.'
If he had known it would be his last, he would never have sent him.
He should have caught him when he sensed something ominous.
When he heard the news that the First Prince had died, he should have investigated it instead of taking up the sword.
No matter how disgusting the brothers who were aiming for the vacant position were, he should not have taken aim with his sword so easily.
He should not be easily swayed by the somewhat credible rumor that his other brothers had killed him to take the throne.
'Ah.'
His head hurt.
A ghost stuck its face in front of him and giggled. It went down, circled around the Duke, and was placed over his face.
He wanted to pull out his sword and strike his neck right away, but the Emperor gritted his teeth instead of hastily expressing his emotions.
He couldn't make the same mistakes he made then.
"The murder of the First Prince, Deon Hardt instead of Cruel Hardt entering the Eight Years' War, the emergence of the Salvation Church."
"..."
"There was always a person behind every incident. There's no way that person is talking nonsense, so I'm starting to be wary of what he's planning to do this time."
"Of course. Even if you think about it, you won't know right now."
The Emperor raised his head. He had a rare expression of surprise.
By saying those words just now, the Duke was admitting two facts.
That he was involved in all the incidents the Emperor mentioned, and that he was plotting something this time, too.
Among them was a story that would have turned the world upside down if Deon Hardt had heard it.
'The Duke is the main culprit behind Deon Hardt's participation in the Eight Year War instead of Cruel Hardt's.'
Originally, the Hardt family was supposed to have Cruel Hardt participate in the Eight Year War. If the documents weren't changed in the middle, it probably would have been like that.
The Emperor also learned of the fact that the documents had been changed during a business trip after the war. To be precise, when Deon Hardt wanted his family to be exterminated, he felt something strange and investigated it.
The documents were changed and Deon Hardt was forced to participate in the war. In response, the Hardt family submitted documents requesting corrections to the imperial palace several times in the beginning, but all of the documents went missing along the way.
Even though he knew all the truth, he pretended not to know and closed his mouth and closed his eyes and accepted Deon Hardt's request, so he was also trash...
The Emperor glared at the bigger, thicker trash in front of him.
"Are you acknowledging all of that now? The minimum punishment would be the death penalty, but it looks like you are truly crazy."
Putting aside the fact that he killed the First Prince, the fact that he admitted to being involved in all other major incidents made each and every one of them a serious crime.
The Duke grinned at the voice filled with a deep sense of malice and threat, as well as a question that could not be concealed.
"I told you this before. Your Majesty cannot kill me."
He looked around with an exaggerated gesture, though there was no one else in the throne room.
"There are no witnesses or evidence. Do you need further explanation?"
"..."
The First Prince's assassination incident could not be tampered with because it was already over, and the omission of documents regarding Deon Hardt's participation in the Eight Year War was a huge blow to him unless there was evidence that the documents were stolen directly from the imperial palace. It wouldn't work. The Duke just messed with the Hardt family, and the Hardt family has now lost its power, so who could say anything now?
Moreover, there was no clear evidence that the Duke was involved in the Salvation Church, so the Emperor had no justification for beheading the Duke.
"Of course, Your Majesty, even if there is no evidence, you could personally end this life. But you probably don't want to do that. If you kill me without any justification, my honor will remain intact, and Your Majesty will become a narrow-minded tyrant who killed the Duke out of fear or discomfort with his power."
"You're talking so well..."
Suddenly, the golden armrests were cracked.
The Emperor slowly leaned forward, looked down at the Duke, and smiled as if showing his teeth.
"How long do you think you can live by destroying all evidence and hiding it?"
Yes,
"Just try to hold on until the end. "The moment the gap is revealed will be the day of your execution."
It will also be the day when everything he had built up fell into the abyss. His meaning of life, which had been fading at every moment, became clear again.
The purpose of life was strongly engraved in him, and he began to feel some lingering regret about this life that seemed like it would not matter when he died.
Until the moment when Duke Stave Illuster destroyed everything he had built and was brutally killed.
The Emperor vowed not to die.
***
Daniel, who had no idea what was happening while he was away, stopped in front of the closed door and looked at his outfit.
Fortunately, he changed his clothes first, so the tattered look he had when he just came back was nowhere to be seen. The injuries sustained in the battle there were hidden under clean clothes, and the faint scent of blood was also covered up with perfume.
It was perfect.
Daniel's face was slightly crumpled for a moment as he remembered the melee with the Murderous Knights waiting in Ireon, but he quickly calmed his expression.
Because he can't look bad in front of his mother.
Knock.
"Mother. This is Daniel."
"Come on in."
When he opened the door and entered, the first thing he saw was a woman smiling and extending her hand.
It was probably a welcoming gesture, but Daniel walked up to her, knelt down on one knee in front of her, held her hand respectfully, and bowed his head to place his forehead on hers.
Instead of removing her hand, the woman lifted her other hand and gently stroked his head. A soft voice sounded like flowing water.
"Are you hurt anywhere?"
"Yes, I came back safely."
"You sprayed perfume."
"Yes."
"I don't think you normally use perfume."
"I tried it once this time. Do you like it?"
"Son."
"..."
Daniel, shocked, raised his head.
Taking advantage of that opportunity, the woman naturally withdrew her hand and cupped his cheek, making him raise his head. Eyes that looked exactly like each other met in the air.
The woman did not delve further into the loopholes in his words or reprimand him. Sh just stared blankly.
After a short but long silence, it was Daniel who bowed first.
"...There was a conflict with the Murderous Knights in Ireon. I suffered some injuries in the process, but the injuries were not that serious and I didn't think I would tell my mother. Sorry."
"Okay, how can I scold my son?"
"No...!"
The rebuttal to the sighing words could not be finished.
Daniel lifted his gaze blankly at the feel of a cozy cloth wrapped around his neck. The woman who tied the finished scarf around his neck was smiling faintly.
"Winter is almost over, but since it is finished, I thought it would be better to give it to you."
"... This..."
"No matter where my son is or what he does, this mother will not say anything. Because you don't deserve it. If I could just say one thing as a favor..."
A warm voice that melted the snow settled in his ears, as if announcing the arrival of spring.
"Be careful not to catch a cold, son."
Wherever you go, don't get hurt, don't get sick, and especially don't die.
Take care, son. This mother still kept the gifts her son gave her.
***
"Are you sure you want to leave right away?"
"Yes."
"You didn't even change your clothes."
"The Duke is planning something again. Looking at what he said to me confidently, even if we investigate now, it will be too late to do anything, so it would be better to hurry before something happens."
He could change his clothes upon arrival.
The Emperor crossed the hallway with wide strides, still wearing his cumbersome attire. The Prime Minister, who was following behind, spoke as if he was worried.
"An escort..."
"It's just annoying, so that's enough."
"You're wearing cumbersome clothes and moving around without an escort. Besides, isn't the destination a battlefield? Are you really sane?"
"I don't know. It would be better if I just died."
"Your Majesty!"
"Why become Prime Minister if you can't tell the difference between seriousness and jokes?"
There was a blatant sigh in a voice filled with obvious laughter. The Emperor glanced at the Prime Minister, then returned his gaze to the front and mumbled the words.
The mouth that had been smiling slightly became stiff again as if it had never been like that before.
"What is the point of the King's position? There was something my siblings said in an attempt to impress our father. I still remember it."
"..."
"One sister said she wanted to make the kingdom rich, and another older brother said he wanted to make it a kingdom that no kingdom could ignore, an Empire. I don't remember who it was, but there was also a brother who had grand aspirations of unifying the continent."
"..."
"I'm so glad he had so much greed. Thanks to him, I am living such a busy life."
Dry laughter echoed through the hallway.
The Emperor, who had just left the building, left his smile in the hallway, and did not stop walking and strode forward without hesitation on the well-maintained lawn. The voice continued.
"I plan to burn fiercely until the end. So, you don't have to think about pointless deaths like suicide."
It may be an inevitable death that he cannot control, but he had so much to do and responsibilities that he will never die voluntarily. Right now, he didn't even feel like he wanted to die thanks to it. The Emperor, who had just arrived at the stables and was brushing the bridge of his horse's nose, suddenly paused.
'Ah.'
"Thanks to you, I remembered something I had forgotten. I should have told you a long time ago."
"...?"
"I do not place any value on the soulless body. So, if I die..."
"Your Majesty."
The Prime Minister, sensing something ominous, hurriedly called him.
He wanted to stop him from talking. It was even more so because he felt like he knew what was going to be said.
But his call did not stop the Emperor from speaking.
"I hope we don't waste our troops just to get that hunk of meat."
"Your Majesty!"